FRANCE’S HIGHEST COURT has suspended the relegation of Amiens and Toulouse from Ligue 1 but rejected an appeal that could have seen the season restarted.
The key decision could see France’s top-flight expanded to 22 teams next season, with the court ordering the Ligue de Football Professionel (LFP) to reconsider its structure for 2020-21.
The legal cases stemmed from the LFP’s decision in April to terminate the season with 10 games left to play after the French government had said professional sport could not return before September.
Lyon, who missed out on European qualification, launched an appeal and wanted to see the season resumed – a case perhaps strengthened when the French government subsequently announced cup matches can be played in July and August.
Amiens and Toulouse had also appealed against the decision, which had condemned them to relegation.
In its decision published on Tuesday, the Council of State said there was “no serious doubt on the legality of the decision” to curtail the season and said that the judge “validates the terms defined by the league, in particular for the classification of the Ligue 1 championship”.
But it added: “The President considers that the League’s administrative board could not legally rely, in deciding to relegate the lowest two (clubs) of the Ligue 1 ranking, on the fact that the current agreement concluded with the French Football Federation (FFF) provides for a limit of twenty clubs, while this agreement ends on 30 June and a new agreement will have to be signed.
“The judge therefore orders the Professional Football League, in conjunction with the competent bodies of the FFF, to re-examine the question of the format of Ligue 1 for the 2020-2021 season , in the light of all the elements relating to the conditions in which this season is likely to take place, and to draw the consequences as to the principle of relegation before 30 June.”
With Lorient and Lens in line for promotion to the top flight, the decision could now see the top flight expanded for next season.
In a statement reacting to the news, Toulouse said: “The Toulouse Football Club (TFC) welcomes the order made today by the summary judge of the Council of State. The TFC, which maintains that the relegation pronouncement at the end of the last season was illegal, saw its constant position confirmed by the judge.”
Great move for Arnold who’ll be coming out of his 3 year contract with Brive at only 28.
Hopefully he can build up an impressive reputation and shine for a wayward Brive side similarly to Farrell in Grenoble.
The first of many players across the four provinces who will be making this call in the coming months. With the fewer games in the URC and none in international windows game time has got more and more precious. Connacht are well served at centre with Aki, Daly, Farrell, Robb, and Bolton remaining. Other Irish players I could see similarly on their way to pastures new include Gallagher, any one or two of Healy, Crowley, and Flannery and Loughman at Munster and Ed Byrne, Josh Murphy, Penny, and the two O’Brien’s at Leinster.
@David Finn: i wouldnt include Robb here…hes never fit to play. I cant see Connacht holding on to him to be honest
@David Finn: ….you may not have all the names exactly right but your point is well made. Revive the 5th Province Meath, base it in Navan and develope the facilities to match in what is already a very progressive and ambitious club with a proven track record of growing the game to cater for diversity and an impressive record of progress on the field.
@Michael Murray: There is no need for another province what we need in Ireland is a draft system from schools rugby so players go where they are needed most. No use in IRFU shelling out money to keep 8 top class Irish back rows at leinster and then other provinces having to shell out big money for NIQ back rows makes no sense at all. Worst performing province gets first pick of the talent pool each year. We should also move the provincial schools tournament to a national level.
@Punts & Race Discussion: this is an interesting idea, but Leinster can only signup x amount of players each year to academy contracts.
There are still dozens of players who leave school in Leinster who aren’t signed by Leinster but aren’t picked up by other provinces at this early stage.
Also because of the amount of positions, it would take years before a drafts benefits would kick in.
And Leinster only add 4 or 5 players into the academy each year. So that’s 1 round of picks between the 4 provinces. Either way it still means theres talent coming out of schools in Leinster that provinces are ignoring currently.
@Billy Keenan: Leinster sign them to the sub academy so they stay and play their club rugby in Leinster rather than chance a trip to another province
@john joe brady: yeah that’s a good point and there was an article in the indo a few years ago saying something like 20 players were involved in sub academy.
But surely you’d have to say that an Academy contract would outweigh a sub academy one ?
Think Connachts of Illo from the U20s would be an interesting case study. ATightehad (not a position of typical leinster depth with salanoa, angier bent and McGrath leaving recently) who played underage rugby with Leinster. Could be good to dive deeper into what went on there and how he was brought west, a great talent.
@Billy Keenan: and Leinster took on 7 into the academy this year, which in fairness is much more than the 4 I said they did earlier ^^
@Punts & Race Discussion: absolutely no sense in changing Schools comp to national level. For a start you could have Bandon Grammar/PBC/CBC Cork/Newtown Grammar playing up the top of the country. The local rivalries are what drives the Schools Cups, and kids spending hours sitting on coaches to and from games against Schools they have no inbuilt rivalry with will detract from their enjoyment..
Also Connacht, (Garbally apart) doesn’t have schools where Rugby is the main (or only) Sport with male enrollments big enough to compete with other provinces. There are barely a handful of Boys only schools left in the province and fewer against with enrollments near 500 or more…
Anyway the underage Interpro’s pretty do the job pretty well anyway….
@Punts & Race Discussion: so basically force kids to play for teams even if they have no interest in playing for them? Move to a provience where thsy have no connections?
So say a lad from west cork was picked by ulster and said no i dont want to go there do se ban him from playing for his local club?